


Second Thoughts

by TasteOfPoison



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Avengers - Freeform, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Humor, Post Avengers through to pre Age of Ultron, Pre-Avengers (2012), Sad and Happy, TIME changes a lot in a story and there's a big ole change in this. SO those ships will be changing, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-17
Updated: 2015-07-17
Packaged: 2017-12-29 15:25:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,696
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1007002
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TasteOfPoison/pseuds/TasteOfPoison
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Brighter days seem so far away when two small girls are sent down two different paths but somehow they find each other again and a lot has changed in the world they thought they knew. (Major character death hinted in beginning and there will be in later chapters. )</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Not so different

**Author's Note:**

> This is a co-written story with a very dear friend who is like my little sister, Rachy. She helped me cultivate this story and gets just as much credit as I do for writing it. I hope you guys enjoy it! This is the start of a chapter story and my first chapter story posted like ever. 
> 
> xoxo  
> Kitty

The sun shined brighter than Midgard, the colors were out of a painting. A girl sat upon the windowsill. She seemed so ordinary to her own self but the story behind this girl is no ordinary tale. It took her a lot of sacrifice to get where she is now. She was born to a very ill mother whom was told she could never bear children or live past her 18th birthday, and she didn’t make it through the birth. Her father, who was the first scientist to discover the use of gamma radiation, left her at a young age. Her life growing up was full of violence, torment and abuse that none could really see the scars from it now. She bounced around from foster family to foster family. She just let them do onto her what they did. She just took everything they threw at her. She was constantly yelled at for everything they thought was wrong but a stranger came along to change her fate. She didn’t remember how she got there but she was taken to Asgard at the mere age of 10. Odin, who brought her there, had his other sons. Thor tried to teach her things but each time he did, she would fall asleep or skip lessons. Loki, on the other hand, taught her magic and read her the stories and legends as often as she liked. Even at bedtime, she’d enjoy the tales time and time again.  
Her thoughts of her life until now were shortly interrupted at the sound of the door opening behind her. It was the day of Thor’s coronation and she hadn’t even gotten ready for it.  
“What’s this? Her royal highness, Katherine, is not yet ready for the celebration?” said a smooth voice from the doorway.  
“I didn’t think I’d be noticed or missed.” She turned and smiled “Of course, I should have known better cause I’m sure you would miss your shadow wouldn’t you Loki?”  
“You aren’t hidden by my shadow.” Loki smiled before going over to her wardrobe. “Now you must get ready by order of the All Father.”  
“As you wish.” She sighed deeply.  
“I promise, it will be worthwhile to join.” He grins as he pulls a purple dress from her closet.  
“Picking my clothes for me again?” She giggles softly before going over and taking the dress from him. “Thank you.”  
She made her way over to the changing area. Loki chuckled to himself as he exited her room and waited outside for her. She changed, throwing on her emerald jewelry and conjures a little magic to fix her hair up before walking out the door to meet with Loki. They go off to where everyone in Asgard has gathered to see the almost king. Halfway through the great moment, the All Father stops his speech as he senses a disturbance across the palace in the weapons vault. Immediately they make their way over, Katherine stays close to Loki as she senses the danger.  
A while after the Frost Giants had invaded Thor, Loki, Sif, Hogun, Fandral and Volstag had agreed to going to Jotunheim. Katherine wanted to go, wanted to prove herself worthy of being as much a warrior as Sif was but Thor objected her. Loki tried to get Thor to reason but he wouldn’t budge. She looked at Loki with a weak smile before heading to the stables and readying his horse. Loki stepped behind her and sighed.  
“You need not worry or ready my horse, dear Katherine.” He smiled as he laid his hands on the reigns.  
“I will always worry when I am not allowed to go on quests with you.” She lowered her head. “I don’t understand why either.” She blinked at answering him before he even said a word.  
“You’re getting better. You’ll get to come along next time, I promise.” He raises her head up. “Even if I have to sneak you with us, you will get to have your adventure.”  
Loki gets up on his horse and gives her a smile before riding off with the others. 

She had not heard if they had returned or not. She was sitting by the window and saw the Bifrost act as though someone left again or returned, but she did not go to investigate it. Loki usually went straight to her room after the adventures to tell her of what happened but it was long after this return. The news of war, Thor’s banishment and such spread to her and immediately she thought the worst, that Loki hadn’t returned. A few tears shed down her cheek before he entered the room.  
“Katherine.” A firm tone said from the doorway.  
“L- Loki?” She said half happy to see him as she walked over to him.  
Without another word, he swiftly grabbed her arm and led her out of the room. She gasped at his grip before running with him. He took her to the weapons vault and to the end where the Casket of Jotunheim, they stopped abruptly. She scooted to the side of it and looked at him.  
“What is going-“stopped mid sentence, she let her gaze loom over him as he touched the casket. “Loki…WH-why are you…you’re blue.”  
“Yes my dear, I am blue.” He said with a hint of anger in his words.  
She was about to say something when Odin came rushing into the weapons vault. Katherine immediately ducked behind one of the shelves of relics from other worlds and heard everything that happened within the next few minutes. Loki was no relation to Thor; he’d been lied to his whole life. She had snuck her way back out of the weapon’s vault and immediately ran for her chambers. She knew it was probably best to give him space but when she opened the door to her room, Loki was already sitting on her bed, waiting. “Loki.” Came her soft voice as she shut the door.  
“I know you heard the argument.” He stood up and crossed the room to her, “You have to promise me that you won’t breathe a word of this to anyone.”  
“I …I promise.” She whispered as she tilted her head to look up at him. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry you were lied to.”  
“It’s not your fault. It’s not mine either. It is theirs and their fault alone.” He cooed at her before laying a hand on her cheek. “You’re the only one that’s been honest with me and understands. I feel like a monster to have done so little for you all this-  
“Don’t ever call yourself a monster. Do you understand me?” Her eyes piercing his gaze as she laid her hand on his. “You are not a monster.” He just gave her a smile before leaving the room. She begged him not to send the Destroyer, she knew something was going to happen but he ignored her pleads. She stood at the Bifrost entrance and sighed. She remained silent and kept her eyes on her feet before feeling a chilled hand on her shoulder.  
“No matter what happens from here, promise me that you love no other.” Loki looked down at her, not with his normal eyes but his Jotun eyes, blue skin with the etchings along it.  
“I promise.” She smiled, laying her hands on his.  
Not too long after she spoke, Frost Giants came through the Bifrost and ascended to the palace. Scared, she had ran and hid behind one of the spires along the bridge. Loki ran after them towards the palace and disappeared. Horrified, she curled in a ball and sat against the metal spire. She didn’t know what to do except sit there scared and cry. Before her tears fell much, Thor swooped through the air towards the palace while the others were taking Heimdall to the healing room. She got up from her sitting position and saw Thor and Loki heading for the Bifrost. Loki caught sight of her and ran to her side immediately.  
“What are you doing out here? You could be hurt very easily. I think it best if you go inside this moment.” Loki laid a hand on her cheek, with pleading eyes. “Please.”  
“What’s going on? How did Thor return? Why w-  
“I shall explain everything later to you if you just go inside. Please go to your chambers and stay there.” He placed a kiss to her forehead. “This is for your protection.”  
“Loki!” was all she said before Thor knocked him down the bridge. Loki got up unharmed and disappeared inside the Bifrost and placed the staff where the sword would go and began destroying Jotunheim. She stood there and watched Thor and Loki fighting until Thor had Loki pinned down on the bridge. She screamed and ending up raging out into what she was. Her skin turned a lavender color as she ran down the bridge and tried to pull the Hammer off of Loki’s chest. With a single lift, she pulled it off of him and then saw herself before turning back into normal and gasping, looking down at Loki who looked at her. She turned and ran back to where she was hiding before Thor broke into the bridge. Loki ran after him before the last swing and the Bifrost exploded. She shielded herself behind the spire and took wind of it. She turned back to see them falling and Odin catching them. She ran down the bridge to see Loki at the end, hanging on to the staff.  
“Loki! Loki I’m sorry. I didn’t know that would happen when -  
“It’s alright. I understand why we understand each other. You are adopted too.” He gave a weak smile.  
“Help him! Get him up here please!” Her voice pleading at Odin.  
“I could have done it. For all of us.” Loki said as he looked up from them. “Jotunheim wouldn’t have been a threat anymore!”  
“No, Loki.” Was all Odin had said to him.  
With those words, Loki just smiled once more at Katherine before letting go of the staff and falling through the wormhole. Every sound blurred into nothing as Katherine stood there, looking down at the black emptiness. The one person most dear to her was gone.

She ran towards the edge and would have gladly joined him but soon was stopped by Thor grabbing her and pulling her back from the edge. All she found herself doing was kicking and screaming, wanting to break free from his grip on her. Thor threw her over his shoulder and carries her back to the castle. Once inside, she breaks from his grasp and runs for her chambers to collapse to her emotions, soon drifting into a deep slumber.


	2. Ninjahawk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You've already met Kitty sort of so this is the story of Rachy! :D Enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was done by the amazing sister of mine aka Rachy! I wrote the chapter but its about her character so I turned the chapter over to her and let her have free reign so I can not take any credit for this chapter.

It was a nice and quiet day, if loud banging noises from the lab below were considered quiet, at Stark Tower as Tony was hard at work on fixing his iron suits to keep them updated. A few floors up, Tony’s adopted daughter was sketching out her armour, the armour Tony had promised her when she graduated from college. As she looked up from her sketches, she caught sight of her drawings along the wall that came from her childhood years in Brighter Days. Brighter Days was a school for juvenile delinquents or kids that parents just didn’t have the means or want to take care of them. They would drop the kids off never to return for them, and this is where Rachel had stayed up until the tender age of 6. She was originally born in Scotland, but was left orphaned after her parents were killed in a car accident while on vacation in the US. She kept to herself, not much of one for playing with the other kids except when she was dragged over and forced by her caseworker. When this happened, fights or arguments most always broke out. They thought her such a handful because she was born with ADHD. She would have fits, tantrums, violent outbursts, and had a lot of trouble sleeping, but they learned over time that when placed near some sort of technology, she went calm. Even at such a young age, she was very gifted at tinkering with things, technology wise, and she would work hours into the night making little gadgets and gizmos out of different items she had been given.  
Those days at the facility though met a drastic end very quickly when a nearby attack on the area took place. They had zero warning and the building was completely decimated. A search party, accompanied by Tony Stark who had been on scene at the institution visiting with the kids, was sent to search through the rubble to see if any of the children or staff had survived the blast. A few hours into the search and hope was all but lost. Tony watched them as they carried body after body out of the rubble, adults and children alike, and he felt what heart he had go out to each and every one. As he turned to leave the scene, he heard the sound of a low muffled call coming from beneath a pile of dust and rubble. The isolation area where children who had been causing trouble were sent to for time out was on the basement floor beneath the building, and from there could be heard what sounded like a cry for help. Everyone raced and got the rubble moved enough to pull the blood and dust coated little girl out. Startlingly the girl began squirming and yelling to get back to the rubble she had just been pulled from. After a few moments of struggling the relief worker finally gave in and let go of the wriggling child, who immediately bolted back to where she had been pulled from and started digging. Everyone watched her in confusion until finally she stopped, reached as far into the rubble as she could and pulled something out - a small teddy bear with a burnt ear wearing a blue hoodie, with a Scotland flag emblazoned on the front of it and a substantial amount of damage to the right sleeve. The girl clung to the bear as she walked back over to the worker who had pulled her out and was led towards an ambulance to get checked over and cleaned up. Tony sighed in relief that at least one had made it out of the explosion alive, but what he didn’t anticipate was the responsibility that now landed on his shoulders. 

They got the little girl patched up before taking her over to meet the man who tried to protect the school, Tony.   
“This is the girl who was saved, and she’s going to be placed in your care because frankly there is no where else for her to go.”   
“What? But I …” Tony looked down at the little girl and gave a weak smile “Hi there.”   
She simply replied by kicking him in the shin before looking up at him with a cheeky grin. Tony groaned a bit from the kick and huffed, rolling his eyes as he reached down to scoop the little girl up under one arm and headed off away from the destruction. He had no idea what he was going to do now that he was the sole carer for this troubled child, but he was never one to turn down a challenge, and he wasn’t going to start now.   
A few days later Tony drove his Audi back up the long winding road that led to his place in Malibu. He got out of the car and limped around to the passenger side. The door was pushed open and he turned his back and leaned down in front of it, just as the little girl wrapped her arms and legs around him and he carried her inside on his shoulders.  
“You know, you still haven’t told me what I should call you.” Tony said as he sat her down inside his mansion.   
“The lady at the school called me Rachel, which usually meant I was in trouble. The cool janitor man who snuck me sweets when I was on time out called me Rachy, he was nice.” she told him in her soft, childish voice with her contradicting thick Scottish accent.   
“Hmmm, well, I’m nice?“ he gave her a goofy grin, “How about Rachy then?” she giggled at him and nodded her head as he put her down and picked up the stuff he had asked Jarvis to have collected for him. “I hope these are the right clothes and things you like. It’s just a few basics to do the next few days until you and I can go on a real supply run. Now, let’s go find you a room.”   
Rachy ran through the house, tattered bear in hand as always, in complete awe. Never before had she seen such an amazing building, and after exploring the entire house thoroughly picked out a room of her own, which had an interconnecting bathroom that led into Tony’s room. Tony took her shopping, got her new clothes, some toys and any other things he could think of that she would need. Tony also contemplated which school to put her in, researching the local area and being rather unsatisfied with what he found.   
He finally just decided on home schooling her with a private tutor, which, after being given Rachel’s file from the facility seemed the safest option given both her condition and the ordeal which she had just gone through. Tony had no idea just how exactly all this would affect her, but over the years he found out the hard way.

Over the first few weeks Tony struggled. He had to make a massive adjustment to his lifestyle, no more excessive drinking or bringing home a different woman every night - a change confirmed necessary after Rachel wandered into his room after a nightmare to find he was not alone, a situation he was not inclined to have to explain his way out of again. After about a week or so of this Tony began to expect it, until one night she didn’t appear. He walked over into the interconnecting bathroom to peek into her room and found her sat on the floor curled up and hugging her tattered bear. As Tony would come to learn, she had a knack for being able to sense exactly how someone is feeling, and will act on this without ever letting on that she knew.   
“Hey kiddo, whatcha doing in here? Did you have another nightmare?” She looked up at him and nodded softly, before looking back at her hands, clutching her bear a tightly as she possibly could.   
“How come you didn’t come through like you normally do? I know I smell but I can’t be worse than the bathroom!” he joked with her as he tried to get her to crack a smile. She just shrugged,   
“I didn’t want to bother you. You need to sleep too and you don’t need me coming in and keeping you awake all the time” she mumbled as she fidgeted with her bear’s torn hoodie sleeve. Tony moved and sat down on the floor beside her, wrapping his arm around her.   
“Aww sweetheart don’t be ridiculous! Of course you can come to me anytime day or night, I’m always here for you, and if I’m being grumpy just hit me or something, preferably not as violently as that kick to the shin though” he stuck his tongue out at her, causing her to finally smile.  
“Are you sure? I don’t want to be a pain…” Tony scooped her up into his arms and hugged her tight.   
“Super duper sure. You come to me whenever you need me, for anything at all.” he sat with her in his arms for a few minutes before standing up, “Now how about we go get some sleep, you can come sleep in my bed tonight how’s that sound?” Rachy looked up at him and nodded, and he carried her back through to his bedroom. He tucked her and her bear in under the covers before getting into bed himself. He hadn’t intended on sleeping, wanting instead to stay awake and keep an eye on her, but after less than an hour they were both out for the count.   
After that night, Tony and Rachy grew closer and closer, until eventually, on her 10th birthday Tony went through all the official process and paperwork to adopt her as his own. Over the years Tony became fascinated by her aptitude for tinkering and they spent a lot of time together in his workshop, her helping him work on his suits and often working on little projects of her own. She also developed what could only be described as a friendship with JARVIS which Tony found unendingly endearing. Spending time with her became his favourite hobbies, and with his help, she got her education through home schooling before moving on to college, from which she graduated exceedingly quickly, in true Stark family fashion, at the mere age of 16. Tony stood by in the crowd surrounded by all the other parents at her graduation as he watched her walking up to accept her degree. She beamed at him from the stage and it was one of the proudest moments of his life so far.


	3. New places, Old Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The friends are reunited with shenanigans and surprises to ensue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd just like to put here, I'm really in awe because I really didn't think anyone would read this. So to anyone that is reading, thank you for even looking at it thus far. I'm having a little bit of work to be done on chapter 5 and then I can get that edited and such but THANK YOU <3 I am deeply humbled.

Sitting alone in a coffee shop was routine for Katherine now in the morning. She had searched all over the Nine Realms for any sign. A whisper if Loki had fallen through to another world. Nothing. She decided to remain on Midgard after she had searched for the past few days. She had almost given up until there was a recent leveling of the headquarters for SHIELD. She remembered them from when Thor visited Midgard just the previous year. She didn’t see it first hand but she suspected it was a matter of time. 

“You waiting on someone miss?” cooed a soft voice from the booth behind her.   
“Who’s asking?” she said and turned around only to stop on the spot.   
“Well I don’t mean to impose but I’ve seen you here the last few mornings by yourself.” He said softly.   
“You’ve watched me then?” She said with a slight smile before looking at the floor. “And yes, I’ve been waiting on someone that…”   
“You missed a date too?” He said softly before turning back around to his booth.   
She felt a bit empathic for him saying that. Without another word, she got up and went to pay for her coffee and headed for the door, looking over and smiling before leaving the little café.   
“Hey Steve, that girl that just left told me to give you this.” The waitress said as she set down a cup of coffee.  
He smiled at the cup and turned to look out the window.   
Katherine smiled to herself as she left the shop and was heading down one of New York’s busy streets when…

Smack! Thud! 

She was sitting on the ground with her purse and its contents spilt on the ground beside her. Groaning a little bit, she raised her head and looked up, seeing the other girl sitting a few inches away. She hastily put her things back in her purse.   
“Are you alright?” said the other girl in a heavy Scottish accent.   
“Yeah, I’m sorry. I should have been looking where I was going.” said Kat as she sighed and stood up to dust herself off.   
“No harm done! Accidents happen.” The girl said with a smile.   
“True. My name’s Kat. ”   
“Rachy Stark. Nice to meet ye…..well, bump into ye” She said with a laugh as she got up from the ground, picking up her backpack as she did so, which had several patches stitched onto it, a few of which stirred a vague memory in the back of Kat’s mind.  
“Awe one of my best friend’s name from a long time ago had that name. Well I’m sorry to be off but I must go.” Kat said. 

They said goodbye and parted ways but…something about the accent made Kat turn around and look again before she stepped any further away.   
“Were you born here?” she said as she looked at Rachy.   
“Me? Naw, I was born in Scotland. I was adopted by…well my dad now.” She gave a confused look. “Why?”   
“Well I …” She drew her silence in. “I had a best friend from there but we met at the orphanage I was in until I got adopted out by….well my ex-father.”   
“…” Rachy stared up at her with a curious look. “It wouldn’t have been Brighter Days was it? Because that’s where I was until the explosion…”  
Silence captured Kat’s voice as she once again looked over at Rachy. Slowly she moved back towards the other girl and held out her hand. Rachy looked back at her suspiciously, but her curiosity got the better of her so she went along with it. They began to perform a series of intricate fist-bumps, handshakes, and movements until the realization of what was happening began to sink in and they caught on completely, both girls growing more and more excited as they performed their entire secret handshake in rapid speed. As soon as they finished, they embraced one another, Kat squealing with joy and Rachy flailing and laughing out loud at her old friend. The two of them detached from each other before Rachy linked her arm with Kat’s, excitedly dragging her off in the direction of her home.

Once they had arrived at Stark Tower however, they were met by a fellow S.H.E.I.L.D agent and close friend of Rachy’s, Clint Barton, and a familiar face from the diner. Kat’s face went flush as she tried to hide behind her friend slightly, covering her face to hide evidence that she recognized the man standing with Agent Barton.   
“I’m sorry ladies, but you can’t go into Stark Tower right now. Tony’s given us specific orders to keep you, Miss Stark, busy until he calls.” Clint said with a cocky smirk.   
“What do you mean busy? What’s going on?” Rachy crossed her arms and stood there, looking up at Clint with her trademark stubborn grin plastered on her face.   
“Well me and Steve are to take you shopping or to wherever your heart desires, and your friend too.” The smirk not faltering on his face as he spoke.   
“Oh reeeeally? Well in that case, Mr. Chauffeur if you would be so kind as to drive me and my dear friend here to the nearest Mall for we have shopping and lots of catching up to do as we have not seen each other in years.” Rachy replied, grinning widely. If they were to keep her busy, she was sure enough as hell gonna keep them on their toes. “Are you hungry too?” She said and looked at her friend, finally noticing her face. “What’s the matter?”   
“N-Nothing.” Kat managed to stutter out as she looked down at the sidewalk. “Food. I’m starving.”  
They all piled in Clint’s car and headed off for the shopping plaza a few blocks away from Stark Tower. Traffic is of course stopped because some old lady’s cart ran away and caused an accident so they aren’t even out of Stark Tower area and already having to sit and wait. 

“Are we there yeeeeeeet?” droned Rachy as she leaned her head on the door. “Honk the horn and get the idiots out of the way!” Clint just rolled his eyes and stifled a chuckle as he crawled the car forward a half an inch with the traffic. Rachy grew more and more frustrated with the lack of movement, rolling her window down and leaning the whole top half of her body out to yell at the drivers in front.   
“Bloody hell JUST RUN HER OVER! Don’t you guys know its 10 points for a granny! Jeeeez!” Clint looked back over his shoulder and his expression turned to his ‘shit not again’ look as he saw what was going on. He reached his arm back, grabbing Rachy by the back of her belt and hauling her back into the car.   
“Will you please behave yourself? My god there’s no doubt who your father is you two are as impatient as the wind! And stop encouraging drivers into vehicular manslaughter!“ he gave her a look like that of a parent scolding a child before turning back around to shift the car forward another couple of feet. Rachy sat in the back, glaring a hole in the back of Clint’s head and tapping her feet. After a few more minutes she couldn’t take it anymore and leaned forward to play with the radio, trying to find her favourite classic rock station. Clint eyed her suspiciously before saying  
“Isn’t there a rule, that quote from that show you love what is it, ‘driver picks the music…“ Before Clint could finish his sentence Rachy had clambered through to the front of the car, shoving into the drivers seat behind Clint, forcing him out into the passenger seat, which Steve had swiftly vacated when he saw what was about to happen. Kat instantly felt flustered as he dropped into the seat beside her. She didn’t dare look it him for fear that he would notice her awkwardness. She chanced a quick glance over at him and he caught her eye, instantly causing her face to turn bright red with embarrassment, invoking a soft smile from Steve.

“Shotgun shuts his cakehole!” Rachy finished, sticking her tongue out at the scowling archer as she cranked up the volume on the radio. “Now, let’s see if we can’t do something about this hold up…“ Rachy had a quick look around the car before releasing the brake and swerving out of the lane of traffic, speeding up the side of the road, half on the sidewalk half off, past all the waiting drivers, blasting them with ACDC as she went. Clint tried to shout and take control of the car, but before he even got the chance they were already clear of the traffic and en route to the mall.  
Within a few minutes, they had arrived and Rachy slide into a parking spot before some teenagers took the spot. Immediately, Kat flung herself out of the car onto the ground and praised the concrete.   
“LAND!” She cried out as she stayed there for a second before getting up with a smug grin.   
Once inside, they headed straight for the food court to get something to eat. They opted to split up and each headed for a different section to obtain their choice of lunch. After returning to the table and devouring their food like a group of travelers that hadn’t eaten in days, Clint got up and began clearing the table, taking the trays and rubbish to the nearest bin. Rachy scoured the layout of the mall on her phone, noticing the faint smiles and glances being exchanged between her friend and Steve. Realising what was going on, she got up out of her chair, jumping onto Clint’s back when he returned.   
“Time to split up, we’ll leave you two to get to know each other” she said, grinning back at her friend before turning to look straight ahead, holding her arm out in front of her and Clint. “Onward noble steed! To the record store!!” Clint just rolled his eyes before heading off toward the east block of the mall. This left Steve and Kat standing awkwardly amongst all the other patrons of the mall.

“So...” he scratches his nose a bit. “Do you know exactly what stores you want to go to or like or anything?”   
“Uh…” She gulped nervously and looked down at her hands. “Well…not exactly, see there’s a bit of information that I haven’t quite told Rachy or anyone yet for that matter and…” She fidgeted with her t-shirt. “I am not used to being around mortals. I was raised on Asgard.”   
“Wait you mean you are from the same place as Thor?” he said as they began to walk towards another part of the mall.   
“Thor? You know Thor?” she spoke in utter surprise.   
“Yeah he’s been here because Loki’s been wrecking havoc across the state.”   
These words made Kat freeze right on the spot, not caring whose path she got in the way of. Finally, the whisper of news she had been waiting for was in fact more than a whisper. Yet, inside, she knew she could not let slip of how close she was to Loki, so she played it off.   
“Loki? What would bring him here and I thought…he was dead. I watched him fall into an abyss of nothing.” She chewed at the inside of her lip.   
“Well ma’am I have to say he’s alive and kicking, so to speak.” Steve said with a small sigh.


	4. Talk about a party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well a big surprise party, cake the size of the enterprize, guests and entertainment!

A few hours of shopping, trying things on and Rachel having to teach Kat what things were and how to wear them properly, they had left the mall and it was all clear to be let back into Stark Tower. It was a quiet ride back as Rachel had refused to let Clint drive back again. They conversed up front and Clint kept avoiding telling her what was really going on at Stark Tower. In the back seat, there was very little noise being made. Steve had talked a little bit but Kat was in a reluctant state of mind. 

Rachey pulled into the parking garage of Stark Tower, which was unusually full for this time of day. She parked up beside her dad’s Audi and everyone piled out of the car. Clint was stuck carrying Rachel’s bags while Steve insisted on carrying Kat’s inside. The girls talked amongst themselves while walking in, looking back every so often to see how amazingly goofy the guys looked with all the bags. Once they got to the 34th floor, they were stopped by unfamiliar people and redirected to another place on the floor which had been magically turned into a beauty salon almost. Rachey stood there, staring in horror and started backing away behind her friend. Immediately the unfamiliar people ran over and grabbed the girls, and after managing to get them pulled apart, took them into separate rooms. Fussing and fighting, Rachey came bolting back out the door screaming about how she wouldn’t be caught dead in a dress. 

“I’m so not wearing that thing! You people know damn well I don’t do dresses!” Rachey huffed, standing outside the room practically in her fighting stance before they tried to drag her back into the room. She kicked, flailed, and grabbed onto the door frame in protest. “LEMME GO!” 

A good 5 minutes and 6 people later, she was finally pried away from the door frame and gave in, conceding instead to formulate a plan. They presented her with a clothes rack of numerous dresses and styles. She haphazardly picked a flown, long blue dress with short sleeves and a silver pendant embellished to the dress. Next they moved onto styling her hair exactly as she wanted it. The sides of her were hair shaved in but not completely, followed by them dyeing her hair a midnight blue along with some silver streaks here and there. Afterwards, the stylist pulled her down into the chair and went about styling her hair into a semi punk mohawk in the front, leaving it down in the back. Finishing her up, the stylists then set off to retrieve make up, of which Rachey refused all but her usual black eyeliner. Meanwhile over on the other side of this madness, Katherine was half freaking out as she was sitting in the chair wearing a short purple dress with long lengths of material trailing from the bottom of the dress. She felt as though she was back in Asgard with all the attendants tending to her every need and finally it calmed her down to think of home. She wiggled her feet in her gold heels as they tended to her red hair, fluffing it up in the back in little bouncy curls with the bangs straightened. A few minutes and some make up applications later, they finally brought the girls out to see each other. Kat gasped as she saw Rachey, who trudged out of the room half sulking, but with her trademark mischievous grin hiding just below the surface.

“How the hell did they get you into a dress?! You hated the ones we were forced to wear at Brighter Days!” Kat asked her friend, a shocked expression on her face as they were lead to the elevator.   
“Pfffft, you mean the ones they ‘tried’ to force me to wear, I didn’t give in without a fight. Don’t you worry dear sister of mine, I got this shit covered.” Rachey smirked at her friend as she adjusted the dress before stopping to fix her shoes. “Heels I was not gonna change my stance on however, Converse it is.”   
“Always having a back-up plan.” Kat just laughed and shook her head as they stepped into the elevator. 

A short elevator ride to the top of the tower and they stepped out onto the floor. Rachey looked around and saw that the usually bustling common room was eerily quiet. Kat stepped next to her with a loud clank of her heels which in turn caused Rachey to jump. Low huffs from the girls before both of them were dragged away by Clint and Steve. Arguing ensued as they neared the door to the conference area before Clint opened the door, and the room was lit up and filled with the yells of Surprise for Rachey. A mixture of emotions flashed through her eyes as she slowly stepped into the room, covering her face while making her way to her dad and kicking him in the shin before hugging him tightly.

“Dad, you over did it for me this year.” She grumbled lowly while looking around at all the people in the room. “Why so many people hmm?”  
“Well it’s your 21st! And you are legal to drink now so I thought I would at least make it memorable to some.” Tony chuckled as he hugged his daughter. “Now come on, go enjoy because in about 15 minutes, your cake will be here my dear.”   
“Daaaaaaaad.” He shushed her before she could continue and she rolled her eyes at him as he shooed her to go mingle with people.   
Instantly, she leaned back and grabbed her friend, yanking her around.   
“Woman! Now you didn’t know about this did you?” She crossed her arms and looked up at the other girl with a frown.   
“I didn’t even know you were still around…and I might have possibly heard it from Cap when we went shopping.” Kat grinned before looking around again. “It’s a nice sized party. Didn’t expect…”

Her voice trailed off as she stopped in her tracks and saw someone looking at her. A familiar face with the same charming smile, the long raven locks of hair falling around his face but not his eyes. His eyes were now a blue colour instead of that warm green she remembered. Her face scrunched up and she blinked and suddenly he was gone. Silently, she moved through the crowd over to where she had seen him and looked around. No one was there and it bothered her greatly as she turned around and there he was again on the other side of the room with the smile. She felt a growing rage inside her as she wanted to smack him good, but instead she cracked a smile of her own. His face once more faded from view when she reached the spot he had been standing. 

A little ways from Kat, Rachey had been recaptured and was being ushered around the room by her father, being introduced to everyone and anyone of high status in New York as well as some celebrity guests. Tony then led her over to the bar and tapped the tall, strapping, badass stood there. He turned around and you could see that there was ink on practically every inch of skin that was showing. Rachey nearly stumbled backwards in shock when she realized she was currently stood face to face with her idol, Jacoby Shaddix. They were about to say something to each other when all the lights went out in the room.

Suddenly, music started playing, softly at first but building up the suspense as a single spotlight appeared on the doorway at the far side of the room. Rachey realized the music playing was the Hawaii Five-0 theme and instantly began looking around suspiciously, waiting and almost getting impatient about what was about to happen. The door opened with the dramatic peak of the music and out walked Scott ‘Danno’ Caan himself, a trolley being pushed behind him by others with a gigantic replica cake of ‘Eleanor’ – the 1967 Ford Shelby Mustang GT 500 from Gone In Sixty Seconds, Rachel’s all-time favourite movie - along with another 4 tier cake of black, blue and silver with a rhinestone “R” atop the cake. Perched upon the Mustang was her little Scotland bear, just as she always remembered him, with his slightly singed left ear and torn hoodie sleeve. When she spotted it, she instantly looked towards her father, beaming at him as he mouthed ‘love you’ at her, and her smile grew even bigger if that were even possible. Rachey looked back and screamed with delight as she saw Scott walking her way and covered her face. Everyone in the room was in an uproar of talk about the cakes and surprise guest. 

The cakes were wheeled over to the center of the food area as pictures were snapped of the beautiful masterpieces. Mr. Caan walked over and held his hand out to Rachey, which she shakily accepted as he led her over to where the cakes were. The room went quiet again as Scott began to speak, Rachey staring at him completely in awe and disbelief that this was actually happening.

“Miss Stark, I present you with the most epic cake of all cakes for anyone’s twenty first birthday. On behalf of the entire Hawaii Five-0 cast & crew, we wish you the best and most sincere Happy Birthday. I’m glad I could come in honour of them and present you with these wonderful gifts as well.” He held his hand out towards a table covered in far too many gifts. “Now let’s get this party started!” 

Everyone applauded and began lining up for a piece of the cakes. Rachey was trembling with excitement as Scott leaned over and enveloped her into a hug. Once she managed to shake herself out of the state of shock she had been standing in, she excused herself for one second and took a step back. He gave her a funny look as she grabbed the shoulder of her dress tightly before pulling on it as hard as she could. The dress ripped right down from her shoulder across her body before dropping to the floor, leaving her stood in her favourite Papa Roach tee, ripped jeans and ACDC Converse. 

“Dear god that is so much better. I hate wearing these stupid dresses and shit.” She laughed as she stepped back over to him.   
“Well I have to say you do look far more comfortable than you did in that dress. Join me for a drink?” He laughed, offering his arm to her.   
“I would be delighted.” She grinned, linking her arm in his as they headed to the bar.

They chatted away on the walk over and ordered a round, and soon everyone was out on the dance floor drunkenly embarrassing themselves or consuming more alcohol at the bar. Well...Almost everyone. Rachel looked around and couldn’t spot her friend out on the dance floor. She scrunched her face and squinted as she saw a figure out on the balcony area. She bit her lip and sighed, before going back to her conversation with Scott. 

Outside, Kat leaned on the railing and stared into her drink as she waited alone. She heard a soft throat clear behind her and turned around, half expecting him to have come out of hiding but instead saw Steve standing there in a very sharp looking suit. She felt her cheeks warm up as she folded her hands behind her. 

“I didn’t know you were still here. I thought you had left.” She gave a slight nervous chuckle.   
“Yeah we kind of got lost talking to some of the others from …our work.” He softly gulped, not sure if she was aware of SHEILD so he decided not to risk it. “Are you okay? I mean why are you out here by yourself?”   
“Oh I’m just...just getting some air. I’m fine; it was just a little too warm in there for me.” She gave him a reassuring smile.   
“Well just making sure. If you uh…well I mean you don’t have to but I came out here to ask you if you wanted…to maybe…dance with me…” He smiled shyly while scratching softly at the side of his neck.   
“I’d love to but I’m not that good. Just give me a few moments to catch my breath and have some energy to dance okay?” She smiled at him brightly.   
He nodded with a smile before going back inside to the party. She sighed and turned back around to admire the city skyline. 

“Well I never thought you’d be the one to lie about dancing. I know for a fact you are a wonderful dancer.” A voice from the shadows of Stark Tower said.   
“Well you taught me everything I know.” She said lowly before turning to face where the voice came from. “I’m sure that wouldn’t have been a great thing to say that I once was the adopted sister of a great king who was cast out and who I thought dead for a year and a half. Did I mean that little to you, Loki?”   
“I did not say that. I did not turn up on Midgard until a portal brought me here. I have been to worlds and seen things you would not think possible, Katherine.” He reached his hand out but slowly tucked it back into the shadows when she did not reciprocate the motion. “I learned of a greater power and I could give you everything you wanted. Just like I would have back in Asgard. Knowing we were never truly brother and sister, I knew that what I felt wasn’t that kind of love.”  
“Loki…I need time. You can’t just parade back into my life after a year and a half of hell I went through to try and find you in all the nine realms. Not a word nor whisper of your whereabouts. I swore to Thor I was not gonna return to Asgard until I found you. And then what should happen but I find my way to a nearby friend and some chaotic event happens. I knew it was you that turned up.” She turned away from him, keeping her eyes on the skyline of New York.   
“I’ll give you the time but you must promise me something? Promise me no matter what happens, that won’t change for anything or anyone. If I get hurt again, if bad things happen…please don’t forget me.” His eyes were the only thing shining from the darkness and for a split second, they were that warm green color she remembered.   
She looked at him longingly. She wanted to just embrace him and forget everything that happened but she knew she couldn’t give in that easy.   
“I promise. It hasn’t and won’t ever change.” She said following a heavy sigh. 

He smiled at her a warm, glowing smile before his eyes changed back to the piercing blue she witnessed earlier, and in a poisoning snap, he enveloped her in his arms and within an instant they disappeared before anyone could see.

Back inside, everyone’s attention was directed to the stage where Rachey saw that Jacoby was now up on the stage, causing her to go completely wide eyed as she hopped up onto the counter of the bar to see better. He made a small announcement before introducing the very special birthday surprise from her father, who was watching from the side of the makeshift stage that was put up for this occasion. He smiled brightly as soon as he spotted his daughter, His mind slightly eased when he saw that she really was enjoying herself. A few moments later, Jacoby introduced the surprise band for her birthday party, AC/DC. Everyone cheered and Rachey was kneeling on the bar, jaw dropped as Jacoby joined them for the first song of “Back in Black”, so enthralled by what she was seeing that she didn’t notice herself leaning further and further forward, to the point where Scott had to swiftly lean over and catch her before she completely face planted onto the floor. He hopped up to sit on the bar beside her and wrapped his arm around her, keeping her balanced there while they enjoyed the impromptu concert together.


	5. Missing

Morning soon broke upon the city of New York and the light shined the brightest in the top floor of Stark Tower. A few moans and groans of waking up were echoing throughout both the bedrooms and upstairs on the top floor. Rachey was stirred from her sleep by the faint aroma of early morning coffee brewing, but when she went to stretch; her arms hit two other forms. She halted mid-stretch and opened one eye suspiciously. On her right she discovered Jacoby sleeping peacefully next to her, his hair tussled around, mouth slightly ajar with a slight hint of drool on the arm his head was resting on. She stifled a giggle at him before her mind started to whirl, trying to remember anything from last night after the concert. Sufficient to say, not much came to mind before leaving the bar and crashing out. The other form she hit was a big pillow, which had evidently been put behind her to keep her drunken form from rolling off the bed. She groaned quietly as she reached for her phone on the bedside table. As she brought it to her face she saw there was a post it note stuck to the front of it:   
‘Rachel, it was such a pleasure meeting you last night. Apologies that I couldn’t stick around for the rest of the party, but duty calls as they say. I would love to keep in touch, my number is programmed into your phone ;) and feel free to stop by the set if you are ever in Hawaii. Speak soon, Scott.’   
Rachel couldn’t stop the huge grin that spread over her face as she hugged her phone to her chest. Slowly, she moved herself out of the bed, so as to not wake sleeping beauty, pulled on her favourite hoodie she’d borrowed (stolen) from her dad, and quietly shuffled out of the room to find her best friend. 

After checking her room and finding nothing but drunken partygoers passed out on the bed and floor, she tried the girl’s cell phone, as she made her way from room to room and eventually from floor to floor.   
A few hours later, with no sign of her friend, an infuriating headache setting in and a desperate need for a caffeine hit, she began to worry. She wracked her brain one last time to find anything that would hint towards her whereabouts when something sprung to the front of her mind - she had seen her out on the balcony.  
“Jarvis! Can you locate someone for me if they are in the building?” Rachey pondered as she paced around in a circle in the kitchen.   
“Of course, Miss Stark. Would you like me to see if I can locate Miss Katherine?” Jarvis replied.  
“Please and thank you! I’ll be downstairs with dad if you find anything.” She poured two freshly brewed cups of coffee and slowly made her way to her dad‘s workshop.

Rachey got down there only to discover that her father wasn’t even there. With confusion on her face, she punched the key code in with her elbow and went inside to find it completely empty. Sipping at her coffee she sauntered over to her finished suit hanging in its compartment on the wall. She bit at her lower lip as she considered her options while admiring her suit. She jumped and spilled some of her coffee as Jarvis chimed in  
“Miss Stark, I do not wish to alarm you but I cannot locate Miss Katherine anywhere. I even expanded my search throughout the city and came up with nothing.” He informed her almost disappointedly. 

“Where is Dad at then?” 

“Mr. Stark was called away to an urgent meeting at S.H.I.E.L.D and left a message to tell you to try out your suit, also, and I quote, ’not to try any stupid stunts en route if you want to join him.” 

Rachey grinned eagerly as she dumped her mug on the counter, before running over and pressing the button for the compartment to open, watching in awe as the robots put the suit on her. She kept the mask up as she walked over to the outside balcony. Sliding down the mask, she activated the suit and took a deep breath before taking off. She ducked and swerved a bit in the open air for a good few minutes before she finally managed to steady herself and set off to the pre-programmed destination - S.H.I.E.L.D Headquarters.

 

 

Meanwhile, just outside of the city inside an underground hideout, Loki had Hawkeye and Dr Selvig, along with many of S.H.I.E.L.D’s enemies, working around the Tessaract. He checked on the progress before going down to a room away from the rest. He entered and shut the door behind him to look down upon the sleeping form at the other side of the room. Feeling his head pound as he looked at her, he softly felt his focus coming back and realised what was going on around him. Loki mumbled softly and changed the room to how it looks back home in Asgard and placed a tray down on the table with the breakfast he would always bring her of mixed fruit.   
After a few moments, he stood up and turned towards the door when he heard a soft groan from behind him. He turned back to see her sitting up, looking rather disheveled from the night before. She hugged the single blanket around herself and curled into it before looking around.   
“W-What are we doing back home, Loki?” she cooed as she looked up at him.   
“I took it upon myself to make sure you were going to be safe from whatever happens.” He walked over to kneel at her bedside.   
“But I want to be down there with you. What if you get hurt again? What if I lose you again?! I can’t go through that if it’s permanent this time.” She felt her stomach knot up as though she were going to hurl right on the spot.   
“No…no you will not lose me this time.”   
“I feel like I already have.” She whispered while looking up at him before turning to lay back down, facing the wall, tears falling down her face quietly as she tried to stay calm.   
He stared at her with a look of confusion, pain and sadness. He turned and slammed the door behind him as he left to go report back to the ones controlling his mind.

Across the city, more like above the city, Fury gathered who he could, but was very confounded when he found himself unable to get a hold of one of his newest and best agents, Kat. He heaved a sigh of relief however when he saw his adopted granddaughter, Rachel, walking in through the doors with her suit on and ready for action. 

"Where's my dad?" She insisted as she headed straight for one of the helicarriers computers and started typing.   
"He's in the lab with Doctor Banner, why?" Fury was about to continue when he realised the expression on the young agent’s face. "What's wrong, Rachel?"   
"My best friend Kat showed up yesterday, totally out of the blue. She was at the tower for my party last night, but sometime after the drinks started flowing she disappeared. I can't find her anywhere. JARVIS couldn't find her at all. I'm not getting a signal anywhere in the world. Something is wrong and I don't know why." Feeling more than a little distressed, she put her head in her hands while looking at the screen.   
"Kat as in Katherine Banner?" He asked as he leaned over and pulled up her profile on the computer.   
"What?" Rach looked up at him with confusion written all over her face.   
"Katherine Banner. She was born to his late wife that passed away and was left in his care. However when he couldn't control what was inside him, she was sent off to a more protective area, Brighter Days as you know. After the attack she was never found, we assumed she didn’t survive because we were unable to locate her and she never resurfaced until a few years ago with the incident in New Mexico. That's when we learned that she was Thor's adopted sister all that time. We informed her that we had no location on her father then but she had changed. There was a difference in her as she spent the time looking for something. She never said what but with Thor's help, we may have an inclination of what brought her back to New York." 

Rachel sat back to let the information soak in about her friend, confused and yet amazed that maybe they became friends for a reason. Still, it was a whirlwind of information to soak in and she rubbed her head for a moment before raising up. 

"So you mean to tell me, my best friend who was like my sister all those years ago, has been living on Asgard of all places, and she...does she have the same traits as her father?" She asked with hesitation as she saw her father and Doctor Banner walking on the bridge. 

"Well yes and no. Yes she has enhancements but they are recessive in her and not as strong as they are in me." Bruce says while looking worried. "Though I'm sure there is some ounce of that anger streak from me in there. The problem is I had no idea she would gain those traits, and she has no idea she has them." 

"Well that explains why she beat the crap out of those older guys bullying me at the orphanage when it wasn’t even that big of a deal, nothing I couldn’t handle myself." Rachel chuckled a bit before looking up at them her expression turning more serious. "Still, she's missing and we have no idea where to find her."

"Thor told us of the bond she developed with Loki and how she felt so lost after he had disappeared into the wormhole but recent activity, meaning the levelling of the SHIELD base outside of D.C. got her attention here and -  
"Director, we have a hit, sixty eight per- wait...one hundred percent match. It's her. She's in a holding cell in the Brooklyn Correctional Facility associated with SHIELD....and there's another hit ....wait that can't be possible. There's multiple matches of her across the city." 

"Loki." Thor says as he drops in from the balcony. "His magic is unlike no other. He knows we are looking for her because I had words with him. He's not going to give her up until we give him the Tesseract." 

"So give him the stupid shiny blue box!" Rach announced as she stood up. "Otherwise I'm going to put this magical idiot out of his misery for stealing my best friend!" 

"Have care how you speak of him, he may be gone from his mind. There is something controlling him, some other power greater than his and he's still my brother." 

"He killed eighty people in two days." Steve said with annoyance. 

"....Adopted brother but still, the Loki I know is still in there." 

"Okay are we done sulking and talking about this asshole so we can go get my best friend back?" Rach said as she slid the helmet of her suit down, already flying out the window. 

~*~  
At his hidden base, Loki sat at the head of a table as he awaited some colleagues he has formed bonds with while on this petty terrain of a planet. His most trusted one so far being the man that controls metal, known as Magneto. With the opening of the door to the room, they shared an understanding bow as he entered, but Loki was confused by the two others that followed in after him. 

"I had no idea we were bringing guests of sorts to this meeting." Loki said as he stood up from his seat. 

"These are the two I told you about, the twins. Wanda," He gestured to his left at the petrified looking brunette, and then to his right at her stern brother "and Pietro." 

"Ah, yes." Loki smiled, thoroughly impressed with their age, "I expected them to be older, what with their reputation, but let’s not pre-judge them."

"This is the guy we are going to be working for father?" Wanda asked with a quirk of her mouth and subtle scoff. 

"Easy, Wanda." Magneto said with a wave of his hand. 

"A little fiery one." Loki said, bemused as he stepped up to them. "A quality I admire in a woman." He heard a low growl and chuckled at her overprotective brother. "Don't fret, I wish for both of you to feel at home here. Feel free to roam around and get to know your surroundings. Erik, shall we speak of our other business in private?" 

Magneto looked to the twins and nodded at them in reassurance before following Loki to the table. Wanda looked at her brother hesitantly as they both turned to see all the soldiers Loki had assembled around the base. They walked around, seeing so much going on until they got to a lone corridor extending out to a room at the end of it. Drawn with curiosity, they wandered down to find out what was in the room. Wanda opted to keep a look out as Pietro peered into the window and spotted a form sitting with her knees to her chest and against the wall. He looked over and motioned for his sister to come closer and unlock the door. Wanda used her powers to override the locking mechanism and opened the door for them to both step inside to which Kat looked up startled. 

"Girl, are you alright?" He said cautiously in case she was in there for a violent reason. 

"W-Who are you? Are you Loki come to play another trick?" She muttered at them in a less than threatening voice that made him laugh. "What?" 

"You have a stout heart in that tone but there is a sense of fear. What do you mean another trick?" 

"Loki stole me from a party last night at Stark Tower so yes another trick so to speak. He's always been one for mischief but this is something else entirely." She wiped her face as she slowly raised up from the floor. "Who are you?" 

"I'm Pietro and this is my sister, Wanda. We are going to be associates of Loki to help him gain the...uh w-well we don't exactly know yet." 

"All we know it is very important." Wanda spoke as she looked at the broken girl. "There is something about you that is connected to this isn't it?" 

"In a sort of way, I was a princess of Asgard and Loki well... we were both adopted by the all Father. So I was very attached to Loki years ago...." She turned away from them. "I still am but in a different way than could be explained. Things are complicated now though." 

"Ah you have already met then." Loki said, interrupting the three as Wanda and Pietro stood in front of Kat in reaction. "I'm glad to see you three getting along because I have a mission for you. You will be Katherine's personal escorts of sorts to the next location. Our underground has been compromised. With your speed, Pietro, you can ensure she gets there without being found yes?" He nodded at him. "Good, we have to keep the satellites from finding her and I will arrive there after everyone here is cleared out and everything is moved. The location is just outside of these coordinates." Loki's eyes met Kat's for a short moment as he handed a piece of paper to the other male before he left the room. 

The siblings shared a glance and muttered in a language that Kat had not heard before Pietro approached her, "I hope you can hold on and not get sick." He lifted her easily, which surprised her at first but she settled confused in his arms. Before she could suck in a breath of air, everything went into a slow blur as she clung onto him for dear life. The world spun around them as he zipped through cities and towns without hesitation. For fear of too much vertigo, Kat closed her eyes and buried her fearful face into his shoulder as he ran. Pietro halted for a moment in the middle of a desert to check on her to make sure she had not fainted. 

"My apologies for not giving you a warning. I wanted to get as far as I could before we stopped. Are you okay?" He asked, not showing an ounce of being out of breath. 

"I'm okay. I just got a little dizzy and needed to close my eyes. I didn't mean to lean against you, I just had nowhere else to shield my eyes." She mumbled in a slight whimper. 

"No no, Katherine is it?" She nodded, "I wanted to make sure you had not eh...fainted." 

"No, I just - 

"Pietro." His sister chimed in like a little kid with a laugh. 

"Yes Wanda?" He mumbles while looking up at her. 

"You know you are going the wrong way yes?" Wanda chuckled while crossing her arms, "Is your head a bit cloudy brother? This town of....eh...Maspeth, it is north not west."

"Oh...you don't say?" Pietro blushed at his mistake but Kat made a noise of giggling that startled them both. "Hey. She smiles and laughs. So clearly she's not evil."

"Don't let this cute face fool you." Kat said with a grin. 

"I like her." Wanda replied brightly, "It's nice to have another female to associate with." 

"She's a little peach." He sweeps her off her feet before she could blink and smirks, "It's too bad that she is already under someone else's command." 

"I am under no one's command but..." She trailed off, looking away in defeat. "You're right. I am under someone else's command."

The siblings shared a glance as if silently speaking to one another while Wanda rested a hand on her shoulder, and realization struck her as she backed away in fear. Pietro set her down once again and Kat couldn't figure out what was going on.   
"What?" She looked between the two.

"You're a mutant too. You have the traits of a more dangerous one than us." Wanda said. 

"C-Can you read minds?" Kat let the fear flood her eyes as she stood away. "I'm sorry I didn't know anything of what I am except one time I got really mad and -

The flashbacks flooded her memory as she fell to her knees with tears in her eyes. With ease, Pietro moved to kneel in front of her and bring her back to reality as he wiped the tears from her cheek. With agreeing words and nods, he lifted her back from the ground and she wrapped her arms around his neck, as once again they sped off into the distance as sundown slowly approached. 

Back at Stark Tower, the team of Rachel, Tony, Thor, Steve, Natasha, Clint and Bruce were hard at work narrowing down places to look as priorities. SHIELD had agents scouring the city as well but Thor was quite the help with knowing how his brother was with mischief. He would leave some evidence of his whereabouts. 

"Tony, you take Rachel and check out the areas upstate. Thor, you take Bruce with you and check out the areas surrounding DC and work your way up the coast. Natasha and Clint, take the Jet and cover as much area as you can. Steve and I will go and check out the old bases that have been abandoned by SHIELD." Fury declared as he slid a new clip into his gun.   
"I GOT A HIT!" Rachel announced as she brought up the big screen in front of them and shifted things around. "She's moving really fast towards Maspeth from the...who can move that fast though? There are two others with her."   
"JARVIS can you give any information on the two with her?" Tony asked.   
"They are simply known as the twins in our database sir. A deeper analysis proves them to be Pietro and Wanda Maximoff, children of Erik Lensherr."   
"Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch." Fury said with a snort, "That's how she's moving that fast. There, the signal ends in Maspeth. Let's go."


End file.
